FY19 Sequestration Rate for Whistleblower Awards

Pursuant to the requirements of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, as amended, whistleblower award payments issued under Internal Revenue Code section 7623 are subject to sequestration. This means that every award payment made to a whistleblower under Section 7623 on or after October 1, 2018, and on or before September 30, 2019, will be reduced by the fiscal year 2019 sequestration rate of 6.2 percent. The sequestration reduction rate will be applied unless and until a law is enacted that cancels or otherwise impacts the sequester, at which time the sequestration reduction rate is subject to change.

The sequestration reduction will be applied after the Whistleblower Office determines the amount of proceeds and the applicable award percentage to be paid under section 7623. Whistleblowers will be advised of the sequestration reduction in correspondence from the Whistleblower Office concerning a proposed award amount and an award determination.

IRS Updates Form 211

From IRS.gov

Form 211 Application for Award for Original Information. Among many changes, some of the highlights of the updated form are shared below:

• Rearranged the information requested into appropriate sections
• Section headers clearly identifying and separating the information were added
• The instructions were updated for clarity

The Whistleblower Office will continue to accept the previous version of the form for a limited time. Please begin using the new Form 211 (Rev. 07-2018) for new submissions.

SEC Announces Its Largest-Ever Whistleblower Awards

 

SEC.gov

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2018-44

Washington D.C., March 19, 2018 —

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced its highest-ever Dodd-Frank whistleblower awards, with two whistleblowers sharing a nearly $50 million award and a third whistleblower receiving more than $33 million.  The previous high was a $30 million award in 2014.

“These awards demonstrate that whistleblowers can provide the SEC with incredibly significant information that enables us to pursue and remedy serious violations that might otherwise go unnoticed,” said Jane Norberg, Chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower.  “We hope that these awards encourage others with specific, high-quality information regarding securities laws violations to step forward and report it to the SEC.”

The SEC has awarded more than $262 million to 53 whistleblowers since issuing its first award in 2012.  All payments are made out of an investor protection fund established by Congress that is financed entirely through monetary sanctions paid to the SEC by securities law violators.  No money has been taken or withheld from harmed investors to pay whistleblower awards.

Whistleblowers may be eligible for an award when they voluntarily provide the SEC with original, timely, and credible information that leads to a successful enforcement action. 

Whistleblower awards can range from 10 percent to 30 percent of the money collected when the monetary sanctions exceed $1 million. As with this case, whistleblowers can report jointly under the program and share an award.

By law, the SEC protects the confidentiality of whistleblowers and does not disclose information that might directly or indirectly reveal a whistleblower’s identity.

For more information about the whistleblower program and how to report a tip, visit www.sec.gov/whistleblower.